Washing machine heater



June 22, 1943. G. M. LUMLEY WASHING MACHINE HEATER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed D90. 10, 1941 INVENTOR.

June 22, 1943. LUMLEY 2,322,580

WASHING MACHINE HEATER Filed Dec. 10, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Qmnililzzmle INV EN TOR.

BY myzm% Aver/rays Patented June 22, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WASHING MACHINE HEATER Gerard M. Luniley, San Antonio, Tex.

Application December 10, 1941, Serial No. 422,444

1 Claim.

This invention relates to washing machines, and its general object is to provide a machine that includes a heater for heating and maintaining the water in the clothes receiving container or tub in a heated condition during the washing process.

A further object is to provide a washing machine oi the motor operated type, with heating means below and adjacent to the bottom of the tub as well as completely housed to prevent heat losses, and while the motor and certain washing and wringing mechanism operated thereby are mounted in the housing they are arranged with respect to the heating means and amply protected to prevent damage thereto by the heat.

Another object is to provide a washing ma chine that includes a heating apparatus which is simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture and extremely efflcient in operation, use and service.

This invention also consists in certain other features of construction and in the combination and arrangement of the several parts, to be hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and specifically pointed out in the appended claims.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings wherein like characters denote like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, and in which:

Figure 1 is a side view partly in vertical section, of a washing machine constructed in accordance with the present invention and illustrates a form that includes a gas burner.

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken approximately on line 2-2 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figure 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken through the gas burner and one of the tips thereof.

Figure 4 is a sectional view similar to Figure 2, but is taken through a form that includes electric heating units.

Referring to the drawings in detail, and particularly to the form of Figures 1 to 3, it will be noted that the machine shown includes a cylindrical clothes receiving container or tub I suitably fixed to and having depending from the lower periphery thereof a skirt 2 that gradually increases in diameter toward its lower end, and welded or otherwise secured to the lower end of the skirt is a downturned flange 3 of a bottom wall I, the latter cooperating with the skirt and the bottom of the tub I to provide a housing that also acts to support the tub. The bottom wall 4 has casters 5 secured thereto. as shown in Figure 1.

A horizontal disk shaped partition 8 is arranged within the housing substantially midway the upper and lower ends of the skirt, and is provided with a downturned peripheral flange I that is welded or otherwise fixed to the skirt. The partition 6 provides an upper heating chamber 8 and a lower chamber Q. Mounted in the lower chamber and fixed to the bottom wall 4 is a motor l0 that drives the shafting for the washing and wringing mechanism through the medium of gears.

The main gear box is indicated by the reference numeral II and secured to and rising therefrom is a tubular housing l2 for the shaft l3 of the washing mechanism, the upper end of the housing l2 being fixed to the bottom of the tub and the washing mechanism may be of the conventional oscillating agitator type. A tubular housing M for the horizontal shaft of the wringer I5, is secured to the gear box and extends through the side of the skirt, as shown in Figure 1. Secured to the outer end of the housing I is a gear box It and secured to and rising from the box IE is a tubular housing I! for the vertical shaft It for the wringer, the latter being conventional and forms no part of the present invention, but is shown together with reversing clutch means l9, merely for the purpose of illustrating that my washing machine is of the modern wringer equipped type.

Horizontally mounted within the chamber 8 is a gas burner that includes a substantially circular tube 20 having its ends closed, and disposed in close proximity to each other, and openings 2| are provided in the top of the tube at equidistantly spaced relation to each other for the passage of gas therethrough. Secured to and rising from the tube about each of the openings 2| is a hollow tip 22 having an open upper end and diametrically oppositely disposed air openings 23 are provided in the tip at its juncture with the tube, as will be apparent upon inspection of Figure 3.

The burner is supported with the tips in close proximity to the bottom of the tub by a pair of spaced flat rods 24 that have their ends welded or otherwise fixed to the skirt, and extending outwardly from the tube 20 midway its ends is an outlet pipe 25 having a valve 28 secured thereto. The pipe extends through a hole in the skirt for disposal of the valve exteriorly thereof, and-secured to the valv is a pipe 21 that has a tapered nipple 28 secured thereto for receiving a hose, for connecting the burner to a gas pipe line. as will be apparent.

That portion of the skirt that provides the wall ll for the heating chamber 8 is provided with a lining ll of sheet asbestos or any other suitable fireproof and heat insulating material, the lining having slots therein which register with upper and lower slots ll of the louver type that are struck from and disposed circumferentialiy in the wall 2!, in equidistantly spaced relation to each other, as best shown in Figure 2. That portion of the shaft housing I! within the chamber 8 is covered with a pair of inner and outer sleeves 32 of sheet asbestos or the like to protect the same and to prevent overheating, by conduction of the lubricant in the gear box i I, and the sleeves are held in place by clamping bands It. The skirt has one or more openings therein whereby access may be had to the chamhers, and the openings are closed by doors which may be of the sliding or hinge type.

The form of Figure 4 is identical with that of the form of Figures 1 to 3, with the exception, that electric heating units are substituted for the gas burner, there being four units shown, and each includes a disk plate It having a spiral heating. coil 35 mounted in a groove in the upper face thereof. The heating units are connected together by pipes 36 for conductors, and a pipe 31 for the main conductor is secured to one plate and extends through an opening in the skirt. The outer end of the pipe 31 has a switch 30 secured thereto, and the switch has a conductor cord connected thereto for connection with suitable current supply. the cord 80 having a plug secured to theouter end thereof, forthat purpose, as will be apparent.

It is thought from the foregoing description that the advantages and novel features of the invention will be readily apparent.

It is to be understood that changes may be made in the construction and in the combination and arrangement of the several parts, provided that such changes fall within the scope of the appended claim.

What I claim is:

In a washing machine, a cylindrical tub having a shaft opening in the bottom, a cylindrical skirt depending from the bottom peripheral edge of the tub, a horizontal wall secured to the bottom of the said skirt, a horizontal partition secured within the skirt intermediate the said bottom wall and the tub to provide upper and lower chambers within the skirt, the said partition having an opening in vertical alignment with the opening in the bottom of the tub, a motor mounted in the lower chamber operable to drive a vertical shaft-extending through the aligned openings in the partition and tub, a tubular housing enclosing the said shaft within the upper chamber, means for insulating the said shaft housing and circumferential wall of the chamber, the said upper chamber wall having circumferentially elongated openings therein, and heating means supported within the upper portion of the said upper chamber in close heating proximity to the bottom of the tub.

GERARD M. LUMLEY. 

